Studying top performers and successful people provides fascinating insight into what makes them tick.

One common characteristic of the most successful is Initiative. I define Initiative as the proactive and personal energy we use/exhibit each day.  

I guess I’m not alone. This morning, I first found this great quote:

“Their comes a moment when you have to stop revving up the car and shove it into gear.”

by David Mahoney

And then saw this post about how many of the CEOs and Leaders share a common habit of starting their day early – often a sign of Initiative.

What is your routine? Have you build the personal habit or routine of making the most of your minutes? Whether you stretch your day to a full 18 hours or not, each minute , when tackled with initiative is productive.

p.s. I’m not suggesting you need to be a workaholic, initiative in your personal activities gets you more fun too!

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Filed Under: Collaborative Selling, Sales Productivity, Sales Tips, Success Tips
Tags: maximize sales productivity, Sales, Sales Productivity, Sales Tips, Sales training, Sales Training article

This is a two-part post. And if you are only reading this for the free goal planner, click here to get your very own Timely Tips to Achieve Your Goals eBook that will help you focus and plan for 2012. The Planner is an interactive pdf, so you can type directly into it and print it out!

It’s the last official work day of 2011!  What a year this has been for me and Sales Pro Insider, Inc.

The whirlwind of opportunities to help companies strengthen sales, collaboration and teamwork kept the whole team extremely busy.

For us, before we begin setting goals for 2012, we start with an activity to reflect back on 2011, specifically. This allows us to use the information to do more of what worked well, and less of what didn’t work so well.

Some questions to ask – and answer – for yourself:

1. What are the successes I am most proud of?

2. What have I done to celebrate these successes?

3. What people do I surround myself with? or Who have I met this year that has impacted me in some way?

4. What goals, that were important to me, did I not reach? Why?

5. Considering the development opportunities available to me this year, how have I applied what I learned?

6. What person have I taken time to develop/coach? or Who is better off now because of my relationship with them this past year?

7. What person has helped me grow or who has challenged me to be better this year?

8. What actions have I taken to better my life in some way?

9. What strengths do I possess that I can use at a higher level next year?

10. What obstacles must I work through so that I reach my goals for 2012?

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Filed Under: Collaborative Selling, Sales Productivity, Sales Tips, Success Tips
Tags: focus, goal setting, maximize sales productivity, Sales Tips

I’ve been in Florida for 5 days. It’s a chance to rejuvenate and write. the ‘plan’ was morning walks on the beach, writing, maybe a swim in the pool in the afternoon, and more writing. A good plan, right?

Well, the weather changed that plan – it rained for 4 days – serious rain, high winds and gloom. 

Today is my day of departure, and of course, the skies are clear and the sun is shining. I made time for a walk on the ocean’s edge before the airport!

As I was walking, I looked for shells. Each trip I find one or two special sea shells to take back to Wisconsin. We put them in the rocks around our pool to connect the two spaces we loves.

The beach was full of people hunting for shells this morning after the storms. There were thousands of shells – or rather parts of shells.  As I walked the shoreline like everyone else, I didn’t see any special shells, they were probably picked up already. So I waded into the ocean a bit to see what else I could find. Some, but still mostly broken. Then I waded out knee deep – figuring its a better workout anyway – and THERE were beautiful shells aplenty!  I filled my pockets within ten minutes.

Isn’t this how it is with sales? We need to look for prospects and opportunity. Yet often its easy to stay where it is safe on the shore and wait for the perfect opportunity to find that perfect prospect to surface.

We then find that many of the prospects may not be qualified – like the broken shells. So we need to exert more effort, wade in further and get ourselves really wet to find the perfect prospects – maybe they are even untouched by our competitors!

By taking the extra steps, we differentiate ourselves from most other sellers. They stay at the shoreline and fight for the easy picks.

By wading in, we can find a more bountiful opportunity.

As you think about this – are you playing it too safe by the shoreline? What waters should you wade deeper in to find your opportunities?

I challenge you this next week to take that step by:

• Identifying what is happening in your market that has washed ashore some opportunities?
• Where are your competitors focusing their efforts because of this?
• What is the next level for finding more opportunities? Is it calling someone you never have?Asking for referrals from your happy customers? Finding a plan for opening new relationships? Mining your CRM for stalled sales or former customers?

Identify at least ONE action  you can take – and then wade in to grab it!

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Filed Under: Collaborative Selling, Marketing Tips, Sales Productivity, Sales Tips, Success Tips
Tags: Collaborative Selling, learning, maximize sales productivity, prospecting, Sales, Sales Tips

I was shipping four boxes of training materials to Canada. It was a project I had worked on full-time for weeks and was so excited to box them up and ship them out.

I’ve shipped boxes consistently – and globally – for the last 12 years, so I was expecting the regular drill – we even had the forms completed in advance.

The normal shipping drill?

• Who are you shipping to?
• When do they need to arrive?
• Is there anything hazardous, liquid or perishable?
• blah, blah, blah

I was thinking, ‘Let’s hurry this up, we have a a celebration lunch to get to!’

But this time was different, we encountered Ann as we entered the FedEx Office Store. It was immediately apparent Ann took her job seriously as she directed us to a cart to use.

Later as we discussed the ‘regular’ questions and she asked for the value of the contents, she looked concerned. And she started asking  more ‘risky’ questions. I explained that we’ve done this before and let’s just keep it moving. Ann examined the boxes and asked more questions,  two of which got me thinking…

What happens if, when you get to Canada, your contents have been damaged?

Do you realize that these boxes move down conveyor belts at more than 40 miles per hour and that without extra paper packaging and padding, the corners of the box can dent? then she pointed out the boxes we had packed the materials were in – which the empty original binders arrived in – were  a bit crinkled in the corners already.

Well, this caused me to pause.

Ann then continued, “I could pack these in a larger box with good padding and you won’t have to worry about any damage.’

I asked ‘How much?’ She calculated it was a total of $40 – to protect materials worth over $12,000!  This was a small price for ‘insurance’.  I agreed it should be done, and Ann got to work – smiling and enjoying every minute of packaging those boxes. Ended up only $35 extra!

The lesson?  As we seek to understand the ‘sitautino’ of our buyers – we need to ask risk questions!  I had no idea of the risks until Ann asked those questions. I never considered I needed to do something different with a job I’ve done so often. her questions opened my mind to new information…and I bought!

Ann increased her sale by 5% that day. Not bad for asking a couple of extra questions. How would you like to expand your sales by 5% or more each time?

It’s possible if we ask our prospects questions about the risk of doing nothing different. These risk questions might sound like:

• What types of liability are you expected to to if your situation remains  unchanged?
• Tell me what will happen in your facility if you don’t make the change/
• What might be the potential downside for not making a decision in the near future? or What is the potential downside if the decision is delayed?
• What could happen if this issue isn’t addressed in the next 6 months?
• Based on your experience, what type of liability is present when ____________ happens?

Caution! I am not an advocate of manipulating people or scaring them to make a sale. In collaborative selling that is not necessary. We can explore the risks together if we ask the right questions.

Now, I’m not a pushover in any way. I’m always on the lookout for ‘getting sold’ to and scams, and I know that Ann was sincere in her desire to help me…and scare me potential harm. So it worked well.

With some thought on the risks your prospects may encounter…IF they move forward in a decision with your solution OR if they do nothing, you can ask great risk questions that  elevate the sense of urgency and advance your sale more quickly.

Those benefits sound like they are worth the risk of asking risky questions, don’t they?

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Filed Under: Collaborative Selling, Sales Productivity, Sales Tips, Success Tips
Tags: Collaborative Selling, maximize sales productivity, Sales, Sales Tips

When you  present or discuss your solution with buyers, do you let them touch or get in touch with your solution? Do you let them take ownership of the solution before they buy?

Research shows touch is a powerful influencer on sales decisions.  Authors Joann Peck (University of Wisconsin-Madison) and Suzanne B. Shu (UCLA) report the following:

“In four studies, we find that merely touching an object increases the feelings of ownership a person has for the object. This, in turn, results in a person being willing to pay more for most objects that they touch versus objects that they cannot touch,” the authors write. “We also find that when touch is unavailable, such as shopping online, having people imagine owning a product increases their perception of ownership and how much they are willing to pay for a product.”

If people have a positive or neutral response to touching an object, they are willing to pay more for it, the authors explain. However, if an object does not feel particularly pleasant to the touch, it decreases the amount consumers are willing to pay. “For most products, the touch experience is positive or neutral so merely touching a product usually increases how much a person is willing to pay for an object,” the authors write.

The research may help explain the link between touch and impulse purchasing, the authors explain. “Encouraging touch in a retail store, as Apple does for products like the iPhone, may increase the feelings of perceived ownership and influence the amount a customer is willing to pay for a product.” Likewise, offers of “free trials” for a certain time before the consumer is obligated to pay are likely to increase perceived ownership and product valuation.

Encouraging ownership imagery can be an effective way for online retailers to increase sales, even when touch isn’t possible, the authors write. “Our findings that consumers respond effectively to the combination of no-touch and ownership imagery suggests a remarkable opportunity for online retailers to increase perceived ownership and purchase.”

Fascinating information!  As sales professionals, we need to get our buyers to ‘touch’ our solutions tangibly or mentally.  How do we do this?

• Demos of the product where THEY are using the solution themselves,  not passively observing us. Example, if we are selling a vehicle, they need to be in the drivers’ seat, not us.
• Stories and analogies are powerful for non-tangible products and services. Relate an example of how someone/company is using and benefiting from your solution.
• Pictures - not a picture of the product/service – a picture of the value/benefits of the product.  If you were selling hotel rooms, showing the configuration of the room is nice, but more powerful is a picture of someone getting a good night’s rest or sitting at the well-equipped business station.
• Customer events where your customers get to talk with each other and share experiences. Using social media to do this is economical and efficient. Forums, customer showcases, Facebook pages all work.

These are thought starters, I’m sure with your creativity you will find ways to let your buyers TOUCH your solution…and increase their ownership and willingness to buy!

Please share any great ideas you have with the rest of THIS community!  All comments are helpful.

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Filed Under: Collaborative Selling, Sales Productivity, Sales Tips, Success Tips
Tags: Presentation, Sales, Sales Tips

Have you ever heard the saying, “Be creative – think outside the box?”  Well, I’m going to challenge that premise…I think to be creative and collaborative we need to think “inside the box!”

Think about it…in every decision and problem resolution, there is a ‘box’ we need to work with.   This box is the parameters or constraints that we need to solve the problem within.  It ‘frames’ the parameters and our possibilities. 

Here’s how it works:  Place the defined problem or decision needed in the middle of the box and then identify the four sides:

1. Time/Schedule
2. Resources – financial, people, etc.
3. Participation – the mental bandwidth and energy you need from others involved
4. Quality -  the qualitative expectation

Your solution needs to be found WITHIN those parameters.  They make up your box.  And if one of the sides of the box changes, the others must change as well! You need to keep your ‘box’ squared up.

How do you use this concept in sales?  An example for you:

We sell training, consulting and HR services for companies.  Our client asked us to submit a proposal to solve their problem of lower sales results from their sales team. The solution we identified collaboratively included 4 components.  To deliver the 4 components included :

1. a schedule for delivery,
2.  resoruces of people and dollars,
3. a need for time with key internal stakeholders and
4.  qualitivate expectations

When reviewing the proposal, the owner identified that the schedule needed to changed and timeline shortened.  Could that be accommodated?  In using the four sides of the box on  a flipchart, together we identified that if the timeline shortned, the other pieces that would need to change.  He didn’t want quality affected. He didn’t want to spend more money, so what he needed to do was to provide a higher level of participation to make it happen.

Without the box as a reference point and consideration, the discussion might have been much more difficult. 

We regularly use the ‘box’ in our discussions.  It keeps a focus on collaborative selling as this is something that is transparent and easily shared.

How can you apply it in yours?  You can use the box for:

• problem solving
• brainstorming
• looking at project delivery realistically
• Collaboration

What other applications do you see application for the ‘box’?  Please leave a comment. Let’s build our ideas for ‘thinking inside the box!’

p.s. A special Thanks to Arpad Hevizi of Celestica. In our discussion today he ‘evolved’ the use of the box and the ‘participation’ parameter was his contribution. Thanks Arpad!

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Filed Under: Collaborative Selling, Sales Productivity, Success Tips
Tags: Collaborative Selling, collaborative+selling, Problem Solving, Sales, Sales Tips

How productive was your last conversation with a prospect or customer? How about the last five conversations? Did the conversation matter? What was the outcome?

More awareness                         A sale

More information                         An action to move the sale forward

A good connection                       A decision

All of these outcomes are good – yet the items in the right column are better. Why? They advance the sale or make the sale. To keep the sale progressing forward, we need to make EVERY conversation matter!

Now some people don’t think ‘little’ things matter.  In fact, when my teens tell me that something they are supposed to do or something that they r didn’t do ‘doesn’t matter’ -  I cringe!  And I always respond with ‘everything matters!’

It’s true – everything you do or don’t do does matter in some way.  The good news is that making your sales conversations matter is not hard… but it takes preparation in systematization.

The power of preparation is often the differentiator between a conversation that matters and one that doesn’t.  Making the time to prepare your ‘plan’, outcome, questions to ask and concerns to address DOES matter!

Then what? What comes after preparation? A systematic framework to follow for your sales calls-we call it WIIFT. WIIFT is the acronym we use for What’s in it for Them as a philosophy of selling? It’s all so an acronym for a systematic approach to make every conversation matter.

Your overview of how  a systematic sales conversation flows:

• Wait. Your mental pause to break your preoccupation and focus on the contact you’re about to have. Review your notes and be ready to engage in a meaningful conversation.
• Initiate. The beginning of your conversation whether it is an e-mail, telephone, or face-to-face contact. The conversation needs to start with a purposeful focus on them.
• Investigate. The needs analysis and opportunity to ask and listen about them and their situation.
• Facilitate. The part of the conversation that is a discussion and presentation of what you can do that will provide an answer to a need or eliminate their challenges. Then work through concerns or objections they have.
• Then consolidate. Bring closure to your conversation. This includes asking for a commitment or decision to the next action and setting the expectation for what comes next.

Read through these again. Notice how this following this framework and accomplishing each step in your conversation WILL:

• Advance your sale more quickly? 
• Keep the focus on the prospect and not on you?
• Build value beyond what they pay?
• Strengthen your relationship and 
• Open the door for more business?

In short, following a systematic framework for every conversation after preparation will make every conversation you have matter.

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Filed Under: Collaborative Selling, Sales Productivity, Sales Tips
Tags: Collaborative Selling, Sales, Sales Tips

Make eye contact is an the age-old communication tip. And it is important. Using your eyes to focus on the other person, ‘see’ what they are saying and more importantly, feeling, contributes to effective communication.

But…what if you aren’t seeing them? Then what?  Nearly all the clients I am working with rarely or NEVER ‘see’ their prospects or customers. The communication is by telephone (including Skype) and written (email, IM, even ‘snail’ mail).  So if eye contact is that important, how much communication is lost when we don’t see each other?

Some history:  For decades authors have shared Dr. Mehrabian’s stats on communication effectiveness:  58% is based on body language (including eye contact), 35% on tone of voice and 7% the actual words we use.  Overgeneralizing his research has caused much debate in the research community on its applicability to all communication situations.  I think whether the actual percentages are accurate or not – it makes the point…COMMUNICATION is complex!

We can also deduct from the tone of his research that without ‘seeing’ our prospects and customers, we can miscommunicate easily because body language is one key aspect to clear and accurate messaging!  That is why I propose that we should be more concerned with ear contact than ever before.

Yes, some may call it listening…I like ear contact as the name of this skill and concept. Why?  Listening is good – ear contact adds more to the nuance of effective listening.  We are always in CONTACT with the other party…we aren’t just waiting to talk – we are connecting to their words, intent, emotion and therefore their ‘hot buttons’ that can make or break our sales!

The definition of contact (from dictionary.com) is “immediate proximity or contact.”  Isn’t that what is important in every communication we have?  That we need to be immediately ‘near’ to the person, their problems, opportunity, wants and needs?

Tips for effective ear contact:

1. Listening without distractions. Stop the multi-tasking!
2. Taking notes on key points.
3. Summarizing your understanding to verify what you heard is what they wanted you to know.
4. Paying attention to the intent and emotion that comes with their words…and their pauses, hesitations and background noise.

Making good ear contact allows you to ‘hear’ opportunity … that you can then translate into sales.

What do you think? What connotation does EAR CONTACT have for you?

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Filed Under: Collaborative Selling, Sales Productivity, Sales Tips
Tags: Listening, Sales Tips, sales tools

Today is my birthday…actually I’m not even supposed to be working – a long held practice from never having to be in school on my birthday since it was always during summer break!

But here I am posting this offer…cuz I’m so excited! What am I offering?  A FREE sales course to 2 deserving sales professionals!  This FREE $1295 8-week sales course will help you build your sales quickly – and I am giving 2 seats away this week!

Details, details….

• The sales training course is in the Milwaukee, WI area beginning September 22, 2010 at 8:30 a.m.
• The workshop is 1.5 days and then the course continues once a week for 8 weeks of reinforcing teleconferences!
• The sales approach is collaborative sales and will include success habit building activities and tools.
• All your materials – and success tools are included!
• You pick up your personal travel expenses.
• Contact me for a full course description.

What do you have to do?  Email me your name, company name and why you are ready to building your sales skills and results.  I’ll draw the winning names Monday morning!

Giving on my birthday makes me so happy!  I hope you’ll take me up on the gift!

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Filed Under: Collaborative Selling, Sales Productivity, Sales Tips, Success Tips
Tags: Collaborative Selling, learning, Sales, sales seminar, sales tools, Sales training